Living for Christ at Home: An Encouragement for TeensSample

Perhaps you are familiar with “the great commandment.” You are to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all of your mind, and all of your strength. The second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. As we’ve been talking about living out our faith in our homes, how might these verses shape the way we treat our family members?

A phrase that is commonly used in Christian circles is “brother and sister in Christ.” We see this language in the Bible, as New Testament believers often referred to each other as brothers and sisters. While these are nice phrases to use, what if we were to treat people the same way we treat our actual brothers and sisters? All of a sudden, this phrase takes on a whole new meaning!

Oftentimes, our siblings can get the worst part of our attitudes and behaviors. We treat them in ways we would never treat our friends, coaches, or teachers. Even in movies, we see the stereotype of siblings fighting, tattling on one another, and locking each other out of their rooms. Yet, in the Bible, we see that God uses this picture of brothers and sisters to represent unity, peace, and friendship in the church. How would our sibling relationships change if we started viewing them in a similar way?

Where can we start in building strong sibling relationships? Forgiveness and prayer.
First, forgiveness. For many of us, past hurts can keep us from opening up to our siblings. Learning to forgive—and to forgive often—is a skill we all need throughout our lives. It’s because God chose our siblings as the people who will be closest to us that they also hold some of the greatest power to hurt us. So, the first step in rebuilding a sibling relationship may be forgiving a sibling for something they have done or continue to do to you. Or maybe you need to ask a sibling for forgiveness for ways you have hurt them.

The second step is prayer. How often have you asked one of your siblings how you can pray for them? We often share prayer requests at church or with Christian friends, but when was the last time you asked a sibling to pray for something you were struggling with? For many of us, the answer is probably never. Taking the initiative to pray with your brothers and sisters will help build your relationship with Christ.

If you're struggling in your relationship with your siblings or feel convicted that you need to love them better, pray this simple prayer:

“God, please turn my heart towards the ministry to my siblings. Thank you for giving them to me as some of my closest friends. Please help me forgive them for any ways they have hurt me, and please make me aware of any ways that I have hurt them. Please help me to be intentional with them and fill my heart with gentleness and love. Amen.